Backcountry rider leads group

HE CAN RIDE: Since 1996, retired state employee Larry Shuman of Cottonwood has been guiding tourists on horseback through the Trinity Alps.

Photo courtesy of Backcountry Horsemen of California

COTTONWOOD -- Resident Larry Shuman has taken over the president's reins -- literally and figuratively -- of the Backcountry Horsemen of California Inc. (BCHC), a statewide organization with 4,000 members in 27 individual units from Yreka to San Diego.

A backcountry stock user since 1996, Shuman served recently as vice president for BCHC before becoming president in January, and he considers his new role a genuine pleasure.

"Some folks would think I'm nuts," Shuman said about managing an organization that covers a territory a little smaller than Arizona.

Shuman joined BCHC in 1997, just one year after he acquired his first horse.

"I always loved hiking the Trinity Alps, and as I got older with the usual aches and pains, it looked like riding a horse was a way I could get out," said Shuman, who is retired from a state job as an information systems analyst.

John Growney of Growney Brothers Rodeo gave Shuman a bucker who wouldn't buck, a mixed-breed gelding -- what horse people call a Heinz 57 -- that he still rides. Gradually, he and his wife have accumulated four adult horses and two youngsters. Two horses serve as his pack stock.

"Lots of backcountry riders use mules for pack stock," he said, adding that his choice for horses was just happenstance. "One horse was 23 years old, and she really knew packing and saved me a lot of heartaches from doing something stupid, which we all do."

Packing supplies and equipment on horses or mules to go deep into the backcountry trails is the main focus of BCHC.

Formed in 1986, the BCHC grew out of a need for stock users to keep their historic wilderness trails open. Many trails were in danger of being closed by government agencies that managed them, and most were always in need of maintenance.

The BCHC organized its members to advocate open wilderness, to support trail construction and maintenance efforts, and to educate the public and its members about Gentle Use and Leave No Trace techniques.

According to Shuman, the service and education components form the core of the organization's activities.

Shuman and members of the local unit, Shasta Trinity, regularly work with the Forest Service, California Conservation Corps, Bureau of Land Management and California State Parks to supply support services.

Members bring their own pack strings and equipment, and pack enough supplies and gear to cover a sizeable trail maintenance crew. They go into the backcountry and help the crew set up camp from which the crew operates for several weeks at a time.

The BCHC volunteers return regularly with their pack strings loaded with mail and supplies.